A lot goes into the creation of a fundraising campaign. It takes time, dedication, perseverance, and a whole lot of faith that what you are doing will speak to others. Below is the story of how the "Swim Beyond Misconceptions" fundraiser came to be.

Don't foreget you can also shop for campain specific 'Lexy and Bruce' Swim Beyond Misconceptions merchandise, enter to WIN our RAFFLE both donating 100% proceeds. Or Shop For A Cause, where for a limited time, select companies are donating partial proceeds from sales to this campaign.

Jenny has spent years advocating for various rescue charities, both local and international. Her objectives are simple: promoting education, adoption as the first option - always, ending backyard breeding and puppy mills, putting an end to dog fighting, supporting senior rescues and of course pitbulls like Lexy.

Before selecting Bruce from the shelves of the pet store Lexy hadn't learned to take any enjoyment from toys. She had many but didn't quite know what to do with them.. then along came Bruce. Lexy's whole world changed and since that day she takes Bruce everywhere she goes. Bruce gave her the confidence she needed as she was still learning how to be a 'dog'. Her years in captivity as a breeder's commodity stole much from her, but most importantly it stole her identity and she didn't know much about just 'being'. But then Bruce was there for her every step of the way as she learned.

-

It truly is a love story for the ages; a rescue fairy tale.

Because of Bruce I started paying more attention to the plight of Sharks and it is truly horrible. They suffer abuse, are vilified, discriminated against, and sensationalized in the media creating a general perscption of sharks as 'monsters'. This overwhelming fear manifests in horrific treatment - they are hunted, tortured, and killed for sport and pleasure. Sharks and Pibbles face the same fate all simply on the merit of society's inability to question and be informed.

-

The pupose behind #LexyAndBruce is to raise awareness of the beauty in both sharks and pibbles; to highlight the value in reaching out beyond our circle of comparative 'others', and to showcase that friendship of all kinds heal and know no boundries.

-

With this in mind, in 2016 I hosted out first shark / pibble fundraiser wtih the campaign title of Discrimination is BullSh#rk (Check out that campaign here). Following that success in early 2017 I contacted Caitlin Cove, of designer behind Sharktopia, explained our mission and asked if she would be interested in partnering. Indeed she was and therein started "Swim Beyond Misconceptions". Caitlin created the graphics and we worked together to hone the ideas and themes; at one point we were discussing at least 7 different ideas. But as Caitlin describes in her interview below, one truly resonated with everyone who saw it. During this time I also reached out to companies who had similar values to myself and Caitlin to create a wonderful RAFFLE wtih over $1200 worth of prizes and a truy inspired Shop For A Cause event with partial proceeds being donated from select compaines for a limited tiime. All of this benefiting our two chosen charities: Ghetto Rescue Ffoundation and Sharks4Kids. It was many, many hours and months of outreach and website work to come up wtih the campaign you see here today.

-

Swim Beyond Misconceptions runs from June 25 - July 23, 2017 but for myself and Caitlin the real work begain in early March 2017. And, paws and fins crossed that this is only the first journey for Lexy and Bruce that Caitlin and I will work on together.

Read below to learn a bit more about Caitlin, Sharktopis and how she came up with the design for this fundraiser.

Caitlin Cove has always been an advocate for sharks, the oceans and all of its creatures. She is an avid practicioner of yoga and meditation, and leads a 100% plant-based lifestyle. She advocate sfor the education and knowledge needed to achieve the best possible future for all living beings and our planet. Through her art, she plans to change the perception of sharks while supporting conservation/awareness efforts world-wide.

Altering the misconception of sharks through art, activism, and awareness.

We sat down with Caitlin and asked her about the Swim Beyond Misconceptions campaign.

Q: How did you come up with the 'Swim Beyond Misconceptions' design?

A: It always starts with a conversation full of questions about goals and what a design should portray. Communication is key with how I work and it's the main reason I consider this a collaborative effort. Countless emails of Q&A along with feedback after so many sketches I can't even remember them all! There was one sketch that really struck a chord and ended up being turned into something magical. The final design is the result of months of back-and-forth sketching, feedback, long lists, and endless determination to show the wonderful and true face of Pitbulls and sharks. It helps to have a model like Lexy and the story of her friendship with Bruce!

Q: How did you become an artist with the specialty that you have?

A: It may be odd to say, but creating art the way I do has always been a part of me. One of the things few people know about me is that I was born with Erbs Duchenne Palsy, permanently effecting my right arm. When I moved my right hand for the first time, I was 1 year old - lifting my arm came later. I'm told that one of the therapies I was given was to have someone move my hand while holding a marker/crayon. When I could create art on my own, the sharks, mermaids, octopus, and other ocean life appeared. It seems that Sharktopia was inside me long before it ever had a name. Even today, my art continues to evolve as I discover new methods. There is still so much to learn - this is just the beginning!

More Info?

So there you have it.. The Making of a Campaign. Mnoths and months of collaboration resulting in what you see today: an advocacy platform that raises awareness for two amazing creatures and compels us all to ask "what if".

If you want to learn more about the apprach we took in pulling this together please do contact us. We are always happy to share our experience and help others in thier own fundraising or advocacy.